
Class 'C^I± . 



ADDRESS 



AT THE CONSECRATION OF 



HARMONY GROVE CEMETERY. 



D. A.' WHITE. 




r 



I 



; 



AN 



ADDRESS, 



DELIVERED 



C? ~h 



AT THE CONSECRATION 



HARMONY GROVE CEMETERY, 



I\ SALEM, JUNE 14, 1810. 



DANIEL APPLET ON WHITE 



\V 1 T 11 -A N APPENDIX. 




SALEM: 

PRINTED AT THE GAZETTE PRESS. 
1840. 



Salem, Ji.'<b 15, 1340. 
Hon. Daniel A. White: 

SIR. 

I arn direcled by liic Tniotces of tin; Ilaniiony 
Grove Cemetery, to express tVie obligations under which they feel thoiiiselves to you, 
for the very exccilent Address delivered at the Consecration of the GrouiKbsaud witli 
this rettun of thanks for the same, to fCfjuest of you a Copy for the Press. 
With great respect, 

Yojir luast obedient servant, 

JOSEril S. C.VEOT, 

I'rosident of the Board of Trustees. 



SaleM: Ju.ve It!, laio. 

I thank you and the Trustees of the Harmony Grove Cemetery for yonr 
kind expressions of satisfaction with tlic Address, delivered at the Consecration of the 
Grounds. Nothing could have been more unexpected, than the call upon uie to de- 
liver this Address; and I regret that the circumstances under which it was written 
prevented a more thorough consideration of the subject. Yet the motives, which in- 
duced me to comply vAtk the request (jf the Trustees to deliver it, forbid my with- 
holding the manuscript from their disjjosal. I submit it to them as it was 
prepared, containing severa! passages, whicl'., from want of time, were omitteil in 
die delivery. 

With great respect and regard, 

Your obedient servant, 

D. A. WHITE. 
Joseph S. Caeot, Esq. 

rrtaidciit of the Board nf Trustees. 



ADDRESS. 



It was with unfeigned reluctance, my friends, as 
some of you well know, that I accepted the honor of 
taking the part assigned to me on this occasion, not 
from any w^ant of interest in the noble object which 
has called us together, but because I felt too deeply 
interested in its success to be satisfied with any- 
thing which I could in this way do to promote it. 
Yet, if others better qualified for the task w^ould not 
be persuaded to undertake it, I could not persist in 
refusing the little service which it might be in my 
power to render, and which was claimed of me by 
those, who, from their own exertions in this cause, 
had a right to command it. You will expect from 
me nothing more than a few plain and sober thoughts, 
the design of which will be to illustrate the im- 
portance of the object before us, and to commend it, 
if possible, still more to your affections and your 
patronage. 

We must all feel under obligations to those of our 
friends, whose enlightened taste and public spirit pe- 
culiarly qualified them for the task of selecting and 



preparing these grounds for a cemetery; and I am 
sure that I do but echo the common voice of grateful 
acknowledgement, when I tender to them our united 
and hearty thanks for their judicious and successful 
exertions. An object of incalculable importance to 
our city and community, and one which for some 
time has been anxiously desired, has thus been hap- 
pily attained. 

We are now assembled, my friends, to consecrate 
this most valuable possession of a burying place, to 
the great and holy purpose for which it is design- 
ed. It is indeed a lovely spot, already consecrated 
in our affections, and now to be endeared by more 
hallowed associations. Harmony Grove! do we 
not at once feel the beauty and appropriateness of 
this appellation? Its natural conformation and di- 
versified scenery are not more in harmony with its 
destined purposes, than are our views and feelings 
in consecrating it to them. Whatever diversities of 
sentiment and interest may excite us elsewhere, they 
follow us not to this sacred and beautiful retreat. 
Here all is serenity, peace, and harmony. It is a 
delightful privilege to meet here in the spirit which 
the place inspires, and engage in a service which 
unites all hearts and interests our deepest affections. 

We are strangers and sojourners on the earth, as 
were all our fathers, and our final resting place here 
is of deep and universal concern. The feelings most 
intimately connected with our subject are founded 
in our nature, and are strengthened and elevated by 
Christianity. Though, when our earthly house of 
this tabernacle is dissolved, we have a house not 
made with hands, eternal in the heavens, yet the dis- 



position of our mortal remains on earth is not a 
matter of indifference. On the contrary, it ac- 
quires an unspeakable interest from the sublime 
truth of Christianity, that this mortal will put 
on immortality. A feeling of reverence and 
sympathy for the dead is natural to man, how much 
more so to the Christian? Departed friends are re- 
moved from our sight, but they exist to our affec- 
tions, they are present to our thoughts and medita- 
tions, and we hold a spiritual communion with them 
which is full of delight. Thus we live with the dead 
not less than with the living. Our intercourse with 
them is not wholly cut off at the grave, though there 
we bid adieu to all of them that was mortal, and 
consequently there cluster our most tender associa- 
tions connected with them; there are awakened our 
fondest recollections; and often, like the affection- 
ate sister of Lazarus, we go to the grave to w^eep 
there. How important then it is to our best feel- 
ings, that the mortal remains of dear relatives and 
friends should repose not in a place which it is pain- 
ful to revisit, but in some rural retreat, or sequester- 
ed vale, where the troubled spirit may be tranquil- 
ized by the peaceful influences of nature, and where 
grief may derive a solace from indulging her tears of 
affection. 

Such is always the natural desire of the human 
heart uninfluenced by custom or prejudice. Natu- 
ral sentiment and feeling delight to associate with 
the memory of loved friends the retirement and 
beautiful scenery of nature, and to cover their graves 
with verdure, and adorn them with garlands and 
flowers. The Roman poet gives expression to this 



8 

natural sentiment and feeling in allusion to the young 
Marcellus : 

" Bring fragrant flowors, the whitest lilies bring, 
With all the piu'plc beauties of the spring; 
These gifts at least, these honors Pli bestow 
On the dear youth, to please his shade below." 

Such is the genuine language of affection among 
all nations. You find the expression of it among the 
ancient Jews, Greeks and Romans; among the Turks, 
the Poles, the Swiss, as well as in many parts of 
England, France, and our own country; facts, too 
well known to need a particular description, and 
they all flow from a deep and tender feeling of sym- 
pathy for the dead, indicating that we think them 
still conscious of the honors paid to their remains. 

These and all similar facts show how natural is 
the feeling which gives us such an interest in the 
dead. Wherever the spiritual part of our nature is 
at all in action, it works out for itself the sentiment 
of immortality, or the sentiment that death is only 
another form of life, and that the dead are living. 
But all associations connected with friends gather 
round the living form. The living form becomes in- 
separable from our ideas and recollections of them, 
and as man, without Christianity, never did, and 
probably never could attain for himself the notion of 
a wholly spiritual existence, it was a matter of ne- 
cessary consequence that the interest which follows 
the dead should connect itself with the body, resolv- 
ing itself into a sympathy with the body and its for- 
tunes, simply because man was unable to imagine 



the condition, pursuits and relations of the soul in 
the unseen and eternal world. 

The ancient Gentile nations, as is well known, at- 
tached great importance to sepulture. Their monu- 
ments to the dead were to be seen by the way side, 
to inspire an interest in the traveller; thus express- 
ing sympathy for the dead, and at the same time de- 
manding and awakening it. The supposed forlorn 
condition of the unburied in the regions below may 
be regarded as only a manifestation of this feeling, 
intimating not that the dead were punished for what 
they could not avoid, but that the living should feel 
the importance of paying profound respect to the 
dead; the importance, in other words, of cherishing 
those feelings of our nature, which were the most sa- 
cred and nearest the religious of all which could en- 
ter the Gentile heart. Their gods inspired no vene- 
ration, and, since their religious feelings were depri- 
ved of the natural channel, this seems to have been 
the direction in which they flowed. With the He- 
brew patriarchs, who were acquainted with the true 
God, this feeling for the dead took its right place in 
the mind; it blended itself gracefully with the high 
religious feelings; and therefore their bearing in re- 
ference to the dead is our appropriate example, all 
their feeling on the subject being essentially the 
same with the Christian. We go to them to learn 
what is due to the dead, and the lesson we receive 
is solemn and striking in the highest degree. 

The various modes of sepulture, which have pre- 
vailed in the world, all serve to illustrate this deep 
feeling for the dead. Embalming the body, as prac- 
tised by the Egyptians and others, evidently sprung 



10 

from tliis iecling; as did also the very oppoistemocle 
of burning the body and enshrining the ashes, which, 
though always abhorrent to the feelings of Chris- 
tians, prevailed still more extensively than embalm- 
ing, and was designed more securely to protect the 
remains of the dead from violation. The most sim- 
ple and natural manner of disposing of the human 
body after death is, doubtless, by burial in the earth. 
Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return, is 
the voice of nature as well as of God. This mode, 
therefore, best accords with our unprejudiced feel- 
ings on the subject. This, too, the Roman orator 
and philosopher, in his Book of Lavv-s, represents as 
the most ancient mode of sepulture, adding the beau- 
tiful thought, that by it we commit the dead to the 
protection of a mother. The great Cyrus, as we 
read in the Cyropeedia, appears to have felt a simi- 
lar sentiment, when, just before his death, he charg- 
ed his children not to enshrine his body in gold or 
silver, or any thing else, but to restore it to the 
earth; for what, said he, can be happier, than to 
mingle with the earth, which produces all things ex- 
cellent and good; and as I have always desired to 
be a benefactor of mankind, so I would now be unit- 
ed with that which is beneficial to men. A senti- 
ment, which beautifully illustrates the power of asso- 
ciation upon a good mind in relation to this subject, 
and justly rebukes the heartlessness of those Cynics, 
whether of ancient or modern times, who have no 
sympathy with the common solicitude for a decent 
burial of the dead. 

The original occupants of the soil whereon we 
stand, deserve a respectful notice in illustration 



11 

of the present topic. Among their noblest traits, 
was a solemn and tender feeling for their dead. 
The description of an Indian funeral, which took 
place in this very vicinity, has come down to us 
fi-om the pen of the curious Dunton, who witness- 
ed it, on his way from Ipswich in 1G86, and it strik- 
ingly illustrates this feeling, while it shows also 
their decent mode of burial. "When the mourners 
came to the grave,". says this traveller, "they laid 
the body by the grave's m.outh, and then all the 
Indians sat down and lamented; and I observed tears 
to run down the cheeks of the oldest among them, 
as well as from little children."^ 

One of the pilgrim fathers of Plymouth, supposed 
to be Gov. Winslow, in his Journal of a Plantation, 
describes a rural cemetery of the Indians, which 
might well be imitated by many of their civilized 
successors. "We followed," says the author, "a 
great way into the woods. Anon, we found a burying 
place, one part whereof was encompassed with a 
large palisado, like a churchyard, with young spires 
four or five yards long, set as close one by another 
as they could, two or three feet in the ground. 
Within, it was full of graves, some bigger and some 
less. Some were also paled about, and others had 
like an Indian house made over them, but not mat- 
ted. Without the palisado, were graves also, but 
not so costly."! In one other respect, the Indian 
practice might instruct some of the proudest of their 
civilized successors. They wisely placed their 
cemeteries at a suitable distance liom their villages. 

But it is in the history of the patriarchs, as al- 
ready intimated, that vvc may expect to lind the 

"- Lill mid Enois, 1; 185 f "^ Marf.- lliot (^illociiuiis, 21>^. 



12 

clearest illustration of our subject, as well as the 
purest model for our direction in the sacred duty 
which we owe to the dead. Whose heart has not 
been moved by the touching simplicity and pathos 
of the account, given in the Scriptures, of the man- 
ner in which the patriarchs attended to the holy 
rites of sepulture? And Abraham" came to mourn 
for Sarah, and to weep for her. And Abraham stood 
up from before his dead, and spake to the sons of 
Heth, saying, I am a stranger and a sojourner with 
you; give me a possession of a burying place, that I 
may bury my dead out of my sight. The generous 
sons of Heth replied, thou art a mighty prince a- 
mong us, in the choice of our sepulchres bury thy 
dead. But nay, said Abraham, entreat for me to 
Ephron, the son of Zohar, that he may give me the 
cave of Machpelah for as much money as it is w^orth. 
Ephron answered, the cave I give thee, and the field 
I give thee; bury thy dead. Abraham replied, but 
if thou will give it, I pray thee hear me, I will give 
thee money for the field; take it from me, and I 
will bury my dead there. And he weighed unto 
Ephron the silver, four hundred shekels of silver, 
current money with the merchant. And the field 
of Machpelah , and the cave that was therein, and all 
the trees that were in the field, that were in all the 
borders round about, were made sure to Abraham 
for a possession of a burying place. And after this, 
Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the 
field of Machpelah. 

Henceforth the field of Machpelah was consecrat- 
ed ground, gathering around it the holiest associa- 
tions and attachments of the Hebrew race. 



13 

Bury me not in Egypt, said Jacob to Joseph, bu- 
ry me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field 
of Machpelah, which Abraham bought of Ephron ibr 
a possession of a burying place. There they buried 
Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried 
Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried 
Leah. 

And Joseph went up to bury his father, and there 
went up w^ith him both chariots and horsemen, a 
very great company : thus fulfilling his father's 
wishes in a spirit of solemn grandeur, worthy of his 
princely and magnanimous ancestor. 

You may trace the funeral customs of all the most 
learned and polished nations of antiquity, and survey 
the stupendous pyramids of Egypt, the gorgeous tombs 
cf Greece, and the splendid sepulchral monuments of 
Rome, yet you will find nothing more apposite to 
our present purpose, or more worthy of our affec- 
tionate veneration, than the touching memorials of 
these noble-hearted patriarchs of Judea. Nor w^ould 
the result be different, were you to pursue the inqui- 
ry through the various nations of modern Europe, 
and explore all their boasted wonders of monumen- 
tal art and natural scenery, forgetting not the time- 
honored glories of Westminster Abbey, in England, 
or the enchanting beauties of nature and of art, 
which have given celebrity to the Pere la Chaise of 
France. And why is it so? Simply because these 
patriarchal memorials not only breathe the sentiment 
of immortality and are true to nature, but are full of 
heart. The heart is there in all its simplicity and 
purity, in all its freshness and strength, and it meets 
frorfi every human heart a warm response. 



14 

Nor did this magnanimous spirit die with the patri- 
archs ; it descended with their memor}^ and became a 
striking characteristic of the Hebrew nation. It form- 
ed the soul of their poetry, their ekoquence, and their 
whole literature. It appeai-ed in the ardor of their 
friendships, in the fervor of their devotions, and in 
their undying attachment to their country and its insti- 
tutions. But no where did it appear in a more attrac- 
tive form, than in their tender and holy sympathy for 
the dead. With them, death w^as a sleep, the grave a 
house, a home; and to die w^as to be gathered to their 
people, to sleep with their fathers. A pious rever- 
ence w^as felt for their fathers' sepulchres, with an in- 
superable repugnance to the thought of being separat- 
ed from them in death. The fervid patriot Nehemiah 
bewailed the desolation of his country, most of all, 
because the place of his fathers' sepulchres was laid 
waste; and the good old Barzillai, when importuned 
by his king to go with him to Jerusalem, prayed to 
be excused, that he might die in his own city, and 
be buried by the grave of his father and of his 
mother. 

In the example of such a peo[)le we might expect 
to find something useful and applicable in the prac- 
tical consideration of the subject before us; and so 
we do, particularly in reference to the location and 
protection of their cemeteries. As the law imposed 
no restriction in these matters, individuals erected 
sepulchres upon their own grounds wherever they 
pleased, in gardens, by the wayside, in fields, or on 
mountains; but it was an almost invariable usage 
with them to locate their cemeteries, whether public 
or private, without their cities. It is said, indeed, 



15 

by Jewish writers, that the sepulchre of King David 
and two others, in the city of Jerusalem, formed the 
only exception to this rule. 

We have seen with what regard to natural situa- 
tion and scenery the father of their nation selected 
the burying place for his family and descendants, 
and with what resolution and liberality of spirit be 
persisted in the accomplishment of his purpose. We 
cannot doubt that the spot thus selected was guard- 
ed from every species of desecration, and so treated, 
in all respects, as to increase the feeling of rever- 
ence which its character inspired. Such, we are as- 
sured, was the customary regard paid to their 
cemeteries by succeeding generations of the He- 
brew people. No improper intrusions upon the 
grounds of a cemetery were permitted ; such as 
the grazing of cattle, or the gathering of wood 
growing there; and no public road or aqueduct 
was allowed to pass through them. It was also 
inculcated as a sacred rule, not to disturb the re- 
pose of a grave by burying again in it, even after 
many years. 

These cemetery grounds are sometimes represent- 
ed as of considerable extent, affording inclosures for 
particular families, ascertained and beautified ac- 
cording to the taste of the respective proprietors, 
the intermediate space being planted with flowers, or 
bordered round with stone. The Jews called their 
sepulchres " the house of the living," thereby inti- 
mating their firm belief in the resurrection of the 
body; and it was this, perhaps, as remarked by a 
late writer, which made them take pleasure in 
strewing the grayes of departed relatives with green 



16 

leaves, flowers, branches of palm and myrtle, and 
surrounding them with shrubs and flowers.* 

The very important rule, that cemeteries should 
never be placed within a city, or among a dense 
population, was regarded, in common with the Jews, 
by all the most distinguished nations of antiquity. 
In Rome, it was among the laws of the Twelve Ta- 
bles. It was observed also by the Christians till the 
age of Constantine, who is said to have been the first 
person w^ho ordered his sepulchre to be erected in a 
church. His example, together with the practice of 
building churches over the sepulchres of holy mar- 
tyrs, or seeking to place their relics under a new 
church, for its greater sanctity, and the belief that 
it was a privilege to be buried near a saint, served 
to make it a general custom to deposite the dead in 
churches. 

This custom extended to England, where burying 
in churches, and in places adjoining to them, were 
practices familiar to the fathers of New England, be- 
fore their settlement in this country. For the for- 
mer of these practices they could have had no pre- 
dilection, but they were probably influenced by the 
latter in so generally laying out their burial grounds 
near to their houses of public worship. Yet, consi- 
dering their intimate knowledge of the Bible, and 
their profound respect for the laws and institutions 
of the ancient people of God, it is reasonable to sup- 
pose that they were more indebted to this source 
than to any other, for their sentiments and feelings 
respecting the dead, and for their manner of sepul- 
ture. 

Among christians we should expect to find, as we 

"Drowirs, Jenisli Aiui.i. v. 5. 25fi. 2G9. 



17 

do, the sentiment of immortality deeper and stronger 
than before; and it manifests itself, in relation to 
this subject, in that lion-like feeling which guards 
the sanctity of the grave; a feeling, rough and indis- 
criminate, but showing by its overwhelming energy, 
how deep is the conviction from which it springs. 

It is natural to ask, why does not this feeling in- 
duce us to take more care of the resting places of 
the dead? To this it might be answered, that taste 
may be wanting, where feeling is strong. The feel- 
ing lays hold on circumstances which seem more 
important, and passes by mere ornament and beauty 
as unimportant things. The country churchyard, 
with its leaning stones and its broken walls, given 
over to desolation, may show no want of sympathy 
for the dead, but only that the sympathy expresses 
itself in another way; as there is a sort of kindness 
to the living, which w^ould not show itself in delicate 
attentions and graceful courtesies, but would mani- 
fest itself in the more substantial way of guarding 
their rights, and defending them from wanton wrongs. 
Yet this feeling, though it thinks not of delicate at- 
tentions to the dead, is always ready to welcome 
them when proposed. It sees their appropriateness 
at once; and those who have the true taste on this 
subject always find it easy to awaken it in others. 
The taste so laudably manifested, many years since, 
by the city of New Haven, in adorning their public 
cemetery, was applauded and had its influence else- 
where. This influence, as I happened to know, 
reached the beautiful town of Newburyport, and 
served to give to their new burial ground its grace- 
ful and attractive appearance. Not many, perhaps, 



18 

would have thought even of the peerless Mount Au- 
burn, but all v^ere struck with it, when once sug- 
gested. The plan has found an universal welcome, 
and is gradually extending itself through the coun- 
try. These examples have thus been the means of 
improving the condition of many of our country 
churchyards; yet much remains to be performed by 
the hand of taste, before they will generally exhibit 
the rural beauty and attraction of which they are sus- 
ceptible. 

In consequence of the general practice, in New 
England, of locating burial grounds near to the 
houses of public worship, all our cities and populous 
towns have grown up around them. Their exist- 
ence at present, therefore, among a dense popula- 
tion, is no cause of reproach to the fathers, nor in- 
deed to the sons, if they use the means in their pow- 
er to remedy the evil or prevent its extension. In 
all our country villages, these sacred places must be 
objects of increasing interest, and of an improving 
taste. It has always appeared to me that they pos- 
sess a moral attraction, which cannot fail to secure 
for them an adequate protection. The first line of 
poetry which I recollect to have read, was this, 
*' An honest man's the noblest work of God," — in- 
scribed upon the grave-stone of a venerated physician 
of my native place; and it made a deeper impression 
than any whole system of moral philosophy since 
read. 

If I might be allowed another personal allusion, I 
would refer to the burial ground of the ancient and 
pleasant town of Haverhill, as possessing a high de- 
gree of moral interest, and admitting of almost any 



19 

degree of rural ornament. It is situated at a suita- 
ble distance from the centre of the village, on a 
beautiful eminence rising from the banks of the Mer- 
rimack. Among its time-worn monuments^may be 
traced, or could have been recently, memorials of 
the same family, for six or seven successive genera- 
tions from the settlement of the town.* And I can 
scarcely imagine a purer satisfaction, or a more 
fruitful contemplation, than T have there enjoyed in 
tracing out such memorials, and thus forming a very 
interesting ancestral acquaintance. 

"Beneath those rugged elms, that yew-tree's shade, 
Where heaves the turf in many a mouWering heap, 
Each in his narrow cell forever laid, 
The rude forefathers of the hamlet sleep." 

Burying in the vaults of churches is now almost 
everywhere discountenanced as injurious to health, 
though in some places still practised; and the per- 

* Aiioilicr fact connected with a branch of the family alludoil to deserve.?, from 
its singularity, a slight antiquarian notice, which may be alloweil here. A farm ad- 
joining this burial ground, near which was the first settlement as well as the first 
meeting house, has regidarly descended, through the male line, from aii original 
grantee of the Indians to the eighth generation, and now belongs to a minor of the 
same name with the first proprietor. 

William White, with his wife Mary, having been one of the first scttleis of 
Ipswich, and also of Newbury, finally settled at Haverhill in 1641, and was among 
the grantees of the Indian deed conveying to the "inhabitants of Pentuekett," for 
"three pounds and ten shillings," fourteen miles in length and six in breadth on 
INIerrimacU River; which deed is still in existence, witnessed by him and in his 
hand writing. His only son John, married to Hannah French, at Salem, Nov. 25, 
1662, left an only son John; who, married to Lydia, daughter of John Gilman of 
Exeter, Oct 26, 16S7, had a numerous fimily, but left this farm to his eldest son 
William ; who, married to Sarah, daughter of Samuel riiillips of Salem, (a grandson 
of Rev. George Phillips and father of Rev. Samuel P. of Andovcr,) June 12, 1716, 
loft the farm to his second son Samuel; who left it to his only son Samuel; who 
left it to his only son William ; who recently died, leaving it to his son William. 

Such a regular descent of lands, in the male line, for so many generations, begin- 
ning with a grantee of the Aborigines, is perhaps witliuut a parallel in the cuuniry. 



20 

suasion that cemeteries .should never be established 
within populous towns or cities is constantly gaining 
gi'ound, and will not fail to become universal. The 
prevalence of these opinions among ourselves ren- 
ders it unnecessary for me to direct your attention to 
those gloomy sepulchral vaults, which cannot be 
opened to the light of day without some danger, nor 
always approached by the afflicted without a shock 
to their sensibilities. Gladly we turn from such 
topics to contemplate the influences of that more sim- 
ple and natural mode of sepulture which is dictated 
by true feeling, whether for the dead or for the liv- 
ing, and to consider particularly the benefits which 
may be expected from the cemetery now to be conse- 
crated. 

The condition of the public burial grounds in Sa- 
lem being such as to require the procurement of oth- 
ers, the city authoi'ities readily united in pursuit of 
the present object with those private gentlemen, 
whose views had long been directed to it. Public 
sentiment and feeling, as well as the example of oth- 
er cities, forbad the establishment of a cemetery in 
the midst of our city population, and created a strong 
desire that the best rural situation in our neighbor- 
hood might be obtained for this purpose. Let u.s 
congratulate ourselves, my friends, nay, let us bless 
God, that the object is now completely accomplish- 
ed, that the very spot, of all others best suited for 
this noble purpose, the spot upon which all eyes and 
all hearts have been fixed, is made sure to us for a 
possession of a burying place, with all the trees that 
are in the field, that are in the borders round about. 

When, some few years since, my eyes for the first 



21 

time rested upon the charming scene here present- 
ed, I was sm^prised and delighted to find a situation 
so near and so perfectly formed by nature for a ru- 
ral cemetery. But I was told, at the time, that lit- 
tle hope could be indulged of obtaining it from the 
various proprietors, who held it by hereditary descent, 
among whom were some of the Society of Friends 
who might not feel a sympathy in the object contem- 
plated. To their honor, however, be it said, to the 
honor of human nature, indeed, which readily yields to 
the influence of so beneficent an object, these appre- 
hensions were wholly groundless, and we have none 
but grateful recollections associated with the late pro- 
prietors of Harmony Grove. Thanks to a kind and 
over-ruling Providence! which, through their peace- 
ful possession, has preserved it to us in its original 
beauty and freshness. It comes to us with the same 
bold and attractive features, the same diversified and 
delightful aspect, and the same pure character, 
which it received from the hand of nature. No foot- 
steps of vice or folly can be traced here; nothing of 
desecration has ever intruded upon this lovely spot. 
Let us then welcome it to our affections, as a gift 
from the God of nature, and let us so appreciate and 
so improve it, as to evince our fervent gratitude for 
the precious gift. 

The lovers of nature had long been familiar with 
this rural retreat, attracted not only by the beauty 
of its scenery, but by the early flowering plants, 
which abound here in great variety, and by the har- 
mony of the feathered songsters, which have ever 
delighted to collect here and to enliven with their 
notes the beautiful grove which owes to them its 



22 

name. This portion of our grounds is finely wood- 
ed, presenting also an interesting variety of trees in 
proportion to their number. To some of you it may 
have been a subject of regret, that the fields, which 
have been added to complete the necessary extent 
of grounds, are not equally adorned with trees. 
But, I think, VvC must all be satisfied with their pre- 
sent condition, when ^^e consider the opportunity 
thus aiTorded for introducing improvements in the 
order and kind of trees and shrubs. We may confi- 
dently trust to the correct judgment and taste of our 
friends who superintend these improvements, that 
every thing in their power will be done to enrich 
and adorn these fields with appropriate plants and 
foliage. It is their intention to introduce here, as 
far as may be practicable, every variety of American 
forest tree and shrubbery, forming a complete Ar- 
boretum Americanum, delightful to the lover of na- 
ture, and useful in a high degree to the student of 
natural history. This object alone, together with 
the beautiful promenades and healthful influences at- 
tending it, affording exhilarating exercise and the 
purest enjoyment, is of infinitely more value than its 
whole cost, to the people of our city and community 
who appreciate the gratifications of taste and the bles- 
sings of health. How incalculable then is the value 
of these grounds, w^hen, in addition to all other ad- 
vantciges, we take into view the great and holy pur- 
pose to which they are now to be consecrated, and 
for which they are so admirably adapted. 

In casting our eyes around us, we are at once 
struck with the bold, yet beautifully variegated scen- 
ery of the place, presenting, at a single glance, ev- 



23 

ery desirable structure and modification of grounds; 
high lands and low lands, the rocky cliff, the woody 
knoll and the sheltered valley, with shady groves, 
and sunny slopes, and verdant plains, all graced by 
the gently winding stream beneath, which flows so 
softly by, that it seems to linger as if to enjoy the 
scene. Ascending the summit, our eyes open upon 
an extensive and richly diversified landscape, around 
the whole horizon, embracing delightful views of our 
neighboring villages of Danvers and Beverly, and, in 
the wide range between them, cultivated hills and 
fruitful orchards, with handsome edifices interspersed 
half buried in the foliage. In an opposite direction, 
rise before our view the spires and towers of our city 
of peace, with noble prospects of the harbor and of 
the ocean. Before quitting the beautifully varied 
landscape, our eyes will not fail to be arrested by 
that ancient "garden of graves" on the opposite 
margin of the river, where sleep the forefathers of 
some of our worthy associates; — an object, always 
beheld from these groves with solemn emotions, and 
now to mingle its holiest influences with all that is 
hallowed here. 

But I would not undertake to describe to you, my 
friends, what you behold in such vivid perfection, 
and what gives increased delight every time your 
eyes open upon the beautiful and picturesque scene. 
I would merely allude to some of the more promi- 
nent features and attributes of this fascinating re- 
treat, which so pre-eminently qualify it for the uses 
of a rural cemetery. Its irregularities and varieties, 
affording a thousand interesting traits and local 
beauties, and always presenting something new in 



24 

aspect or association, are among its leading charms. 
In such a region, the heart is never at a loss to find 
what is suited to inspire and fix its deep and tender 
sympathies, as well as to excite delighted emotions. 
Our local affections, like the vine, seek something to 
cling to and twine about in order to become strongly 
attached. Think you that the captive children of Ju- 
dea would have mourned for their country with such 
undying love and tenderness, had not that country 
attached them by its varied and beautiful mountains, 
as well as its luxuriant vales? Think you that the 
Swiss patriot would cling to his native land with 
such ardor of soul, were its sublime mountainous 
scenery a level plain ? 

'' Dear is that hill which lifts him to the storm." 

So too, the striking varieties of land and scenery 
presented by these lofty summits and lowly vales, 
with these rocks and trees, these shrubs and flow- 
ers, while they afford every desirable form and 
aspect of ground for sepulture, are, in the highest 
degree, adapted to attract the affections and to pro- 
duce strong and tender attachments. 

Shall we doubt then, for a moment, that these 
pre-eminent natural advantages will receive all the 
improvement from art and labor, which true taste 
and a liberal spirit can give? Few, I trust, of those 
philosophers are to be found among us, who are 
wise above the wisest, afi«ecting to regard as of no 
consequence what becomes of the body after death. 
Not so the voice of nature and of God within us. 
Sacred are the remains of the dead among all peo- 
ple. Touch but a single grave with a sacrilegious 



25 

hand, and you rouse a feeling of popular indignation 
scarcely less intense, than if a murder were commit- 
ted. Such is the feeling whose germ is implanted in 
us by our creator, not for the sake of the dead, not 
for the perishing body, but for the living soul — its 
peace, its comfort, its eternal welfare. The living 
soul receives a solace from the respect shown to the 
remains of deceased friends, and is strengthened in 
all its holiest aspirations and purposes by its sympa- 
thies for the dead. Can you imagine a worthier ob- 
ject than the one before us for the appropriation of 
some portion of our earthly treasures? Recollect 
the father of the faithful, who poured out his silver 
like water to obtain a decent burial place for his 
dead. Recollect the patriarch Joseph, who, by the 
munificent funeral of his father, showed that golden 
dust is not too precious to mingle with that of rever- 
ed friends. Think of Joseph of Arimathea, whose 
new sepulchre, hewn out of a rock, was to him the 
most precious of all his possessions. Think, too, of 
the example of him, who so signally consecrated this 
memorable sepulchre, and took from death its sting, 
and who commended the expense of the very pre- 
cious ointment poured upon his head, because it was 
done for his burial. 

No, there w^ill be no want among us of a liberal 
spirit for an object like this. Nor will taste fail, in 
due time, to accomplish her purposes; advancing in 
her work, till these fields, these hills and vales, ex- 
hibit in fullness the combined beauties of nature and 
art ; gradually and slowly it may be, but still advan- 
cing, like the ivy which is to clothe in verdure yon- 
der arch of entrance, and which, though at first sup- 



26 

ported by the wall to which it clings, will flourish 
and prevail till it covers the whole arch, imparting 
to it strength as well as ornament and beauty. 

The completion of this beautiful cemetery will 
form a marked era in the history of our city, to which 
future generations will recur with emotions of grate- 
ful delight. Its benefits will not only be ceaseless, 
but constantly extending with its moral associations 
and its natural beauties, and with the number and 
intelligence of the people who enjoy them. The 
city will here find all needed accommodations for 
interment, while her ancient burial grounds, associ- 
ated as they are with all that is most dear and vener- 
able in the memory of the past, having fulfilled their 
appropriate office, will become objects of taste as 
well as reverence, greeting the eye with the pleasing 
aspect of foliage and flowers, while they impress the 
heart with solemn and tender recollections. Par- 
ticular families will here select their fiworite spots, 
around which will gather their most affecting associ- 
ations connected with departed friends; associations 
deepened and refined by the whole influence of the 
place. "When these selected spots shall have become 
hallowed by the remains of the loved and the rever- 
ed, Har^ioxy Grove will possess all the attributes 
of moral power as well as of natural beauty, to ren- 
der it a most attractive resting place for the dead, 
and one of inappreciable value to the living. 

The vie^v of such a resting place, Avith such as- 
sociations and attractions, is always pleasing to the 
mind, as well as to the sight, and sheds a propitious 
influence over the thoughts and feelings connected 
with our departure from life. Amid infinitely weigh- 



27 

tier considerations, it has its effect, to cheer and 
brighten the pathway to the skies. It softens the 
grim visage of death, strips the grave of some of its 
gloomiest associations, and sweetens the reflections 
of a dying pillow. To the sons and daughters of af- 
fliction, and such in our turn we all are, its consoling 
influences are unspeakably precious. It serves to 
assuage the anguish of recent bereavement, to soothe 
the poignancy of grief, and to restore, in the kindest 
and gentlest manner, peace and cheerfulness to the 
mourner's bosom. Sometimes, indeed, it seems al- 
most to restore the lost treasures of the heart, by 
bringing them home to us with such vivid impres- 
sions, such tender recollections and delightful emo- 
tions. 

But there is yet a higher value, which this rural 
cemetery will possess to every class and description 
of persons, in its influences upon their social affec- 
tions, their virtues, and indeed their whole charac- 
ter, "We are not apt to appreciate fully the effect of 
incidental instruction, compared with that which is 
direct and formal. The associations and feelings 
derived from the accidental impression of external 
things, especially things instinct with all that is in- 
spiring, have a powerful influence both upon nation- 
al and individual character. " Among the Greeks," 
says a French author,* " wherever the eyes were 
cast, there monuments of glory were to be found. 
The streets, the temples, the galleries, the porticos, 
all gave lessons to the citizens." Hence, their love 
of glory and of the arts. The lessons to be given 
here, in these sacred groves, promotive as they may 
be of taste for the arts, as well as for nature, will be 

* Tiiuiiiai. 



28 

essentially conducive to moral refinement and spirit- 
ual culture, and, consequently, to the moral power 
of man and of society. What is there of higher va- 
lue than this? How worthless, compared wdth this, 
is mere wealth, with all its luxury and all its splen- 
dor? Without this, wealth itself cannot be safely 
possessed, far less, can it be rightly used and truly 
enjoyed. Moral power, indeed, is the great agent 
of human happiness, in every state and period of the 
soul's existence. 

Who that passes his youth in the country ever 
forgets the lessons derived from the churchyard of 
his native village? The " sermons in stones," which 
he reads there, abide with him, while those from the 
pulpit, perhaps, will escape him forever. Nor is 
the instruction he receives confined to the teachings 
from stone or marble. The humblest grave is 
itself a monument to human frailty, impressing upon 
every beholder a lesson of religious wisdom. 

" A heap of dust alone remains of thee ; 

" 'Tis all THOU art, and all the proud shall be!" 

It has been truly said by a late eloquent philosopher,* 
" that the parental virtues are not more a source of 
happiness to the child, than they are a source of mor- 
al inspiration." Among the monuments to the dead, 
may be contemplated the virtues of the fathers un- 
der circumstances which give the fullest effect to 
their moral inspiration. The mind is softened by 
its meditations, and made susceptible of deep and 
enduring impressions. And w^hen to the afl^ecting 
lesson, here so powerfully enforced, that it is ap- 
pointed to men once to die, is added the solemn 

* Brown. 



29 

thought, that it is appointed to them but once to live, 
how infinitely important it appears, that this one, 
this only life on earth, should be a life of virtue ! 
The ingenuous, contemplative youth, smitten with 
the admiration of virtue, is ready to exclaim, with 
Alcides, 

"I am thine, propitious power, thy way 
Teach me, possess my soul, be thou my guide, 
From thee, O never, never let me stray.*" 

A true poet of New England, of the last age, in a 
prospective view of the grave of Washington, has 
well described the feeling with which the lover of 
virtue visits the mansions of the dead, to trace me- 
morials of lamented excellence. 

" When thou, as musing Tully paused and wept, 
Where Syracuse and Archimedes slept, 
With solemn sorrow and with pilgrim feet, 
Shalt trace the shades of Vernon's still retreat, 
And, as the votive marble's faithful page 
Inscribes to fame the saviour of his age, 
Shalt dew the knee-worn turf with streaming eyes, 
Where, urned in dust, the mighty Fabius lies."! 

No Washington may ever again arise to bless our 
country by his life, or to hallow any portion of her 
soil in death. But, when time shall have gathered 
future harvests from the fields of humanity, shocks 
of corn fully ripe, with tender flowers and olive 
plants, to ripen in purer skies, and this consecrated 
grove shall have become a home of the departed, a 
city of the dead, here will be found those who emu- 

* Spcnce's Polymctis, 161. t Works ol R. T. raiiic, 190, 



30 

latcd the virtues and possessed the spirit of Wash- 
ington, the benefactors and the ornaments of their 
race. Wisdom and goodness, genius, learning and 
piety will here be " urned in dust," and awaken 
feelings of admiration and reverence, while lovely 
infancy, blooming youth and beauty, call forth the 
tear of sympathy and regret. The " musing pil- 
grim" will here meet many a " votive marble," or 
storied granite, to attract his eye by its graceful- 
ness, and to impress his heart by its touching memo- 
rials. Sometimes he, too, will "pause and weep." 
Kindling thoughts of human excellence and loveli- 
ness will mingle with his meditations, and imprint 
themselves upon his memory. He will return to the 
busy haunts of men with purer sympathies and de- 
sires, and more susceptible to all that is good tmd 
beautiful. 

Who that delights to wander here will not find his 
Jicart moved, his best feelings awakened, his love of 
nature excited as well as gratified, his taste exercised 
if not refined, and his sentiments and views elevated? 
Who that often seeks to breathe into his soul the 
pure and holy influences here imparted to him, will 
fail to find that his principles grow firmer, his afiec- 
tions more kindly, his manners more gentle, his mo- 
tives purer and more benevolent, and his aspirations 
more heavenly? And who, if he could, would wish 
to resist the combined attractions of nature and art, 
of taste and sentiment, drawing him to this "still 
retreat" ? Thousands, from all the various walks of 
society, will yield to these attractions with animated 
delight. The aged, the youthful, the studious and 
the active, the grave and the gay, men of business 



31 

and persons of leisure, will throng these verdant 
walks and avenues, each at his favorite season ; but, 
whether it be in the freshness of the morning, or un- 
der the mid-day sun, at the calm hour of evening, or 
by the moon's mild light ; or from whatever motives 
they may come, whether to enjoy the beauties of 
natural scenery, or to view the embellishments of 
taste and w^orks of art, or whether, "by lonely 
contemplation led," they come to meditate serious 
thoughts, or to weep over some loved one's grave 
tears such as Jesus wept at the grave of Lazarus; 
all, all will breathe the holy atmosphere of the 
place, and be subject to its inspiring associations. 

Such, my friends, we confidently trust, will be the 
sacred character of Harmony Grove, and such the 
blessed effects of its moral power ; a power, which 
will increase with every accession from the living of 
the virtuous dead. And thus, the city of the living 
and the city of the dead will, by their mutual contri- 
bution, exalt each other ; the latter conducing to 
those virtues in life, which in death become its own 
treasures, adding to its moral dignity, and extending 
its propitious influence. 

With the views we have here contemplated, the 
earnest prayers we have here ofTered to heaven, and 
the voice of solemn melody which has echoed so fer- 
vently through these shades, we now consecrate 
these grounds to the sacred uses of a Rural Ceme- 
tery. Separating them from the ordinary uses of 
the world, we consecrate them forever to the repose 
and sanctity of the dead. Let nothing enter here 
that defileth or worketh abomination ; let no profa- 
nation be uttered, no pollution breathed upon these 



32 

consecrated grounds. Let the foliage of these trees 
wave, the flowers here bloom, and the happy birds 
sing, unmolested ; and let the breezes of heaven waft 
the sweet fragrance of these groves in unmingled 
purity and freshness. Henceforth, the place where- 
on we stand is holy ground, and let every wanderer 
here feel, with the awakened patriarch at Bethel, 
that the Lord is surely in this place, and that this is 
the gate of Heaven. 

Once more, we consecrate these grounds, with all 
their treasures of rural beauty, with all their hal- 
lowed associations, to the comfort, the enjoyment, 
and the moral well being of the living ; to the solace 
of grief, to the tears of sympathy and affection ; to 
the cause of piety and virtue ; to the protection of 
innocence, to the growth of wisdom, to the culture 
of all the social and christian graces. 

Finally, we dedicate these precious possessions to 
the guardian care of that all-gracious Being, without 
whom not a sparrow falls to the ground, and surely 
not a mortal returns to the dust, beseeching him 
that the same watchful Providence, which has guard- 
ed these lands from the beginning, may keep them 
forever sacred to the dead, and bless them, in all 
their ennobling uses, to the living. 

My friends, before we retire from these delightful 
and now hallowed scenes, let us bestow a single re- 
flection upon our personal interest in the solemn 
transactions of this hour. Yonder sun will soon 
cease to greet these eyes with his beams ; after a 
few more revolutions in his course, he will shine for 
us only upon our graves, to guide some sympathizing 
friend, or some curious stranger, to the spot where 



33 

we lie. That spot, as we humbly trust, will be 
found in this sacred and peaceful retirement, where 
affection may gather around it her favorite plants 
and flowers, and indulge her tears in all the beauty 
and stillness of nature. The contemplation is pleas- 
ing even in view of our own death. But let us re- 
member, that our spirits return unto God who gave 
them ; and let the sublime thought awaken us to 
renewed ardor and diligence in the service of our 
maker, in the discharge of duty, in the offices of hu- 
manity and benevolence ; thus redeeming the time, 
that when these frail bodies shall be borne hither, 
to mingle with kindred dust, our immortal spirits, 
ascending to the Father, and sanctified through His 
truth in Jesus, may be admitted to dwell forever in 
that building of God, the house not made with hands, 
eternal in the heavens. 



A PPEiNDlX. 



In picsentitig tlic public witli the services pcrforined at the Con- 
secration of tlie Hannotiy Grove Cemetery, a sketcli of tiie origin 
and progress of the Corj)oratioH to whom it belongs, up to that peri- 
o(I, may not lie considered inappropriate or uninteresting. The 
publication of the recorded acts of those who have had the Cemetery 
in their charge, would be perhaps the most satisfactory manner of 
performing this duty ; but as that would extend this notice beyond 
what is desirable, an abstract of the doings of the Trustees and Com- 
mittees is all that may be deemed necessary. 

The very natural desire of providing a place of interment, where 
the remains of the dead could with certainty rest undisturbed, — the 
limited extent and crowded state of the city burial grounds not aftbnl- 
ing the requisite security for this purpose, — first gave rise to the idea 
of establishing a Rural Cemetery. It was thought desirable to pro- 
cure for this purpose a situation, which, either by its natural beauties, 
or by receiving the ornament and improvement which art could be- 
stow, might partly destroy the unpleasant associations usually con- 
nected with a Grave Yard ; removed from the centre of population, 
yet sufficiently near to be always easy of access from the city; of 
such extent as to prevent its soon becoming crowded, and so arranged 
that the remains dci)Osited there would never, at any future period, 
1)0 disturbed ; the whole to be secured by Legislative enact- 
ments from intrusion or violation, and from being appropriated 
to any other object. 

With this purpose in view, at the suggestion of Mr. VVm. H. Fos- 
ter, some genllemen, interested in the project, assembled by the 
invitation of Mr. Pickering Dodgr, at the Lyceum Hull, in thif^ citV; 



m February, 1837. About lifleeu pcr&ous attended, the names of ai! 
of whom it is impossible, ut this late period, to ascertain. Among 
them, however, were Messrs Francis Peabody, Charles Lawrence, 
A. L. Peirson, Francis Putnam, Wm. P. Richardson, Henry Wheat- 
land, Pickering Dodge, and Wm, H. Foster, As several of tiie 
clergy, especially the Rev. Messrs. Brazer, Wayland, IJpham, and 
Thompson, took much interest in the project, it is probal.>le that 
some, if not all, of these gentlemen, were likewise present. But one 
opinion was expressed at this meeting, as to the cxi)cdiency of estab- 
lishing a Rural Cemetery, and several situations were suggested as 
suitable for the purpose. It was, however, decided, before taking 
any steps in the matter, to call, by advertisement in the newspapers, 
a public meeting of all who were friendly to the undertaking. 

Accordingly, in consequence of a notice, published in the Salem 
Gazette, of Feb. 24, 1837, a meeting was held at the Lyceum Hall, 
on that evening, which was organized by the choice of Francis Pea- 
body as Moderator and Wm. H. Foster as Clerk. After discussing 
the plan of the proposed Cemetery, its probable cost, ami the merits 
of the diti'erent localities suggested, in which dis^cussion Messrs. Pea- 
body, Peirson, and others, were engaged, the mectitig selected a com- 
mittee, consisting of Messrs. P. Dodge, W. H. Foster, A, L. Peir- 
son, H. Wheatland, and F. Putnam, to ascertain on what terms the 
different sites suggested could be procured, in what manner the funils 
necessary for the purchase could be raised, and to obtain the refusal 
of such situation as they should decide, after examination, to be best 
suited to the intended purpose. This connnittee were to report, in 
relation to the various subjects committed to them, at an adjournment 
of the meeting. 

After thoroughly examining various sites, both in North and South 
Salem, and deliberately considering the advantages and disadvanta- 
ges of each, the Connnittee came unanimously to the conclusion that 
Harmony Grove possessed all the retjuisites for the contemplated 
purpose and was free from the almost insuperable objections which 
existed against the other locations suggested to the Committee. 
Having ascertained the price for which it could be purchased, and 
ol)tained a refusal of the land, besides taking some ste])S to raise the 
funds necessary for the purchase, the meeting was called together 
on the evening oflMay Ti, 1837, at the Lyceum Hall, to hear the 
report of the Connnittee. 

The evening of May 12. 1837, is memorable in the annals of New 
England as the one on which the Banks of Boston and this vicinity 
were compelled to adopt the Resolution tosu.si)end Specie Payments. 
The gloom produced by that event and the pecuniary embarrassment 
of the ''ountry. together with the prcaaiiig and indisjirnoable engage- 



meats on that evening of several oF the gentlemen who hut! taken 
most interest in the nmlertaking, prevented the attendance at the 
meeting of any but Mr Peabody the Chairman, Mr. Wheatland, 
and one or two others. The causes which prevented attendance at 
the meeting, operated with equal force against taking any further 
measures for the accomplishment of the intended object, and it was, 
as by common consent, sus])cuded or postponed to a more convenient 
season. 

Though suspended, however, the project was not abandoned. 
The belief in its necessity, which had induced to the first attempt, still 
continued and led to new efforts for its attainment. In conse- 
quence of the crowded state of tlie Public Burial Grounds, the City 
authorities had for some time been considering the expediency of 
providing further accommodations for tlie interment of the dead. 
The Mayor, Mr. Phillips, had early called their attention to the 
subject, and some inquiries had been made with the view of enlarg- 
ing the present burial grounds, by the j)urchase of additional land 
for the purpose. Before, however, anything was decided, the at- 
tention of the public, in August, 1839, was again called to the es- 
tablishment of a Rural Cemetery. Mr Phillips, who has been great- 
ly instrumental in the establishment of the Cemetery, and who, not 
more from a desire to gratify his personal feelings, than to promote 
the interests of the City, of which he is Chief Magistrate, has enter- 
ed into the project, and lent his aid with all that ardor and energy 
which characterize the discharge both of his public and private du- 
ties, suggested to the City Authorities the expediency of their uniting 
in the undertaking, and thus obviating the necessity of enlarging the 
present grounds or procuring a new place of sepulture. These 
suggestions were favorably received by the City Council, and such 
assurances were given as led to an arrangement, which was sub- 
secpicntly authorized and carried into eftect. 

In consequence of a notice, published in the newspapers, a meet- 
ing of those friendly to the establishment of a Rural Cemetery, for 
the accommodation of the City and its vicinity, was held at the 
Lyceum Hall, on the evening of the 3d of Sept., 1839, of which meet- 
ing Mr. vS. C. Phillips was Chairman, and Mr. Wm. 11. Foster, 
Secretary. At this time, the object of the meeting having been very 
fully stated by the Chair, a verbal report of the doings of the Com- 
mittee formerly chosen, on the 24th Feb. 1837, was made by their 
Chairman, Dr. Peirson, and the form of an agreement to be circula- 
ted to obtain subscriptions for a loan of money to carry into effect 
the objects of the meeting, was submitted by Wm. H. Foster, to 
whose early and continued zeal and interest in its accomplishment, 
the Cemeterv is much indebted for it- eslabjiohment It waa then 



voted that Messrs. Wm. H. Foster, George Wheatland and E. H. 
Payson of Salem, and Fitch Pool, of Danvers, be a Committee to 
obtain such subscriptions, and that Messrs. S. C. Phillips, J. S. 
CabotjE. Emmerton, Wm. Sutton, and Wm. H. Foster, be the Trus- 
tees of the funds thus raised. 

Sub.scriptions to a sufficient amount having been obtained to au- 
thorize the proceeding with the undertaking, a meeting of the sub- 
scribers. to the fund was held on the Gth Sept. 1S39, of which Mr. 
Phillips was elected Chairman, and Mr. Foster, Clerk. At this 
meeting, Messrs. Francis Pcabody, Joseph S. Cabot, and George 
Wheatland, were chosen a committee, with discretionary power to 
purchase a portion of the ground.s, now owned by the corporation. 
The connnittee purchased eight acres of Mr. George W. Rugg, for 
twelve hundred dollars, and fourteen acres of Mr. John Wilkins, for 
sixteen hundred dollars. They afterwards purchased two acres and 
a half of Mr. Jacob Putnam, for four hundred and fifty dollars, and 
six acres of Mr. Joshua Buxton, for eleven hundred and seventy dol- 
lars. At a subsequent period an additional purchase was made of 
Messrs. Joseph Buxton and Solomon Varney, of about seven acres, 
at a cost of nine hundred dollars. Afterward, an exchange of a small 
part of the land purchased of Joshua Buxton was made with Ichabod 
Nichols, for a piece of nearly similar extent in order to improve 
thereby the shape of the grounds; and with the view of straighten- 
ing the Northern line of the Cemetery, a portion of that purchased 
of Wilkins, Joseph Buxton and Varney, was sold to Stephen Nich- 
ols. The quantity of land purchased and finally retained for the 
Cemetery, was about thirty-five acres, and cost five thousand three 
hundred and twenty dollars. 

At a meeting, on the 20th Sept. 1839, Messrs. F. Peabody, J. S. 
Cabot, A. L. Peirson, S. C. Phillips, and J. C. Leo, were appointed 
to collect the subscription to the fund for the purchase of the Cem- 
etery, to determine upon the form, and to issue receipts to the 
subscribers for the amounts so furnished by each, and to see that 
proper conveyances of the lands purchased were made to the Trus- 
tees of the fund in a form to be deternnned by the Committee. Tiie 
lands were to be held by the Trustees of these subscribers to the 
fund for their purchase, until an act of incorporation could be ob- 
tained from the Legislature, when they were to be conveyed by them 
to the Corporation created thereby. 

At a meeting of the subscribers to the fund held on the <lth October, 
1339, Messrs F. Peabody, J. S. Cabot, S. C. Phillips. A. L. Peirson, 
J. C Lee, U. Wheatland, W. H Foster, P. Dodge, and Wm. Sutton, 
of Salem, and Fitch Pool, of Danvers, were cho.-rien a general commit- 
tee of .•uperintcndcncr, -wiih authority tn take ,^uch measures to carry 



into effect the intentions of the subscribers to the fund, as they might 
think proper. Of this Committee, F. Peabody was Chairman, and 
Wm. H. Foster, Treasurer and Clerk. 

Under the authority given by this and previous votes, tiie Com- 
mittees appointed thereby, commenced tin; preparation of the ground 
for its designed purpose. A Topograjthical plan was mailc, and the 
grounds laid out with walks and avenues by Alexander Wadsworth, 
of Boston. A rustic arch and gateway of stone was constructed at 
the eastern entrance, from designs by and under the direction ol 
Mr. Francis Peabody, one of the princii)al originators of the Ceme- 
tery, and whose services on the Committee, for his taste and judg- 
ment, have been of very great importance. This structure, as seen at 
present, exhibits but the basis or foundation of what it is intended to 
be hereafter, the design being that it should be covered with vines 
and creepers, and thus constitute an arch of living verdure. Other 
works too, were commenced and prosecuted, until winter put a stop 
to further operations. 

At the session of the Legislature, in the winter of 1840, a petition 
having been presented for that purpose, an Act was passed, creating 
certain persons named therein, and all those who should become 
purchasers of lots in the Cemetery, a Corporation, to be called the 
Harmony Grove Cemetery, with all the rights and privileges 
usually appurtenant, besides others specially granted to this and 
similar institutions. This act secures to purchasers of lots in as 
perfect a manner as is posssible, the quiet and uninterrupted en- 
joyment of the same, and punishes with severe penalties any tres- 
passes or violation of the grounds. 

At a regular and legally notified meeting of the corporation crea- 
ted by the act, held on the 29th of February, 1840, of which F. Pea- 
body was moderator, and Wm. H. Foster clerk, it was voted to ac- 
cept the act, and Messrs, Phillips and Wheatland were appointed a 
committee to draw up and report Rules and By-Laws for the govern- 
ment of the corporation. At a subsequent meeting, on the 14th of 
May, 1840, the By-Laws reported by this committe were adopted, and 
the corporation was organized by the choice of officers, who were, 
in pursuance of a provision in the By-Laws, to hold their offices un- 
til after the first sale of Lots, when, as the number of corporators 
would be thereby much increased, it was thought proper that there 
should be a new choice of officers for the residue of the year, which 
officers were afterward to be chosen on the first Wednesday in Janu- 
ary annually. At this meeting, accordingly, Messrs. Francis Pea- 
body, George Wheatland, Stephen C Phillips, Joseph S. Cabot, 
John C. Lee, and Wm. H. Foster, were chosen Trustees, and 
at a meeting of the Trustees, on the ssame evening, Joseph S, 



Cal>ot wa.^ ohospii President, and Win. H. Foster, Trerif^iirer ancl 
Clerk. 

NVith tlie return of .spring, the work on the Cemetery, \vhi(;h had 
heen interrupted by tlie winter, was rcnewecl, under the superinten- 
dence of counnittees appointed for tliat purpose,— the Corporation 
being not yet ori,fanized, — and prosecuted witli as Jiiuch vigor as cir- 
cuuLstances would allow. Fences, either temporary or permanent, 
were built, hedges and trees planted, and the paths and avenues 
graded by Mr. Thomas Cruikshanks, the keeper, and his assistants, 
under the very efficient and active superintendence of Mr. J. C. Lee, 
to whom the faithful and economical jierformance of this portion 
of the work is mainly attributable, and who, for the time ho has de- 
voted and tlie attention ho has paid to it, is entitled to the 
thanks of the corporation ; while the building of a house for the re- 
■sidence of the keeper of the Cemetery, after a model prepared by 
Mr. Francis Peabody, was commenced, under the direction of that 
gentleman and Mr. Phillips, a sub-committee for that purpose. 

The work on the Cemetery was in such a state of forwardness by 
the first of May, as to render it certain that the lots could be ready for 
sale early in the ensuing month, and the grounds so far prepared for 
their intended object, that their consecration might take place at that 
time. At a meeting of the committee, on the 2d of May, it was ac- 
cordingly voted, that the consecration should take place on the first 
Wednesday in June, which time, however, was subsequently altered 
to Saturday the 13th of June, and that the Hon. Daniel A. White be 
requested to deliver an address, and the Rev. Dr. Brown Emerson, 
of Salem, and Rev. Charles C. Sewall, of Danvers, be invited (u 
perform the religious services suited to the occasion. 

The corporation having been legally organized, the land purchas- 
ed for the Cemetery, and which had till as yet been held by the 
Trustees of the subscribers to the fund for its purchase, was now, in 
accordance with the terms of that trust, conveyed to the corpora- 
tion, the President having been directed by a vote of the Trustees, on 
the I4th of May, to see that such conveyance was duly and legally 
executed. Henceforth, then, the duties of the Committee of Super- 
intendence appointed by the subscribers to the fund, ceased, that body 
itself by this conveyance being dissolved, and all operations at tha 
Cemetery were afterward conducted by the oft'iccrs of the corpora- 
tion. 

It has already been slated, in a previous part of this notice, that an 
union of the City with Individuals in the establishment of the Cen)e- 
tcry was early contemplated. The understanding was that the City 
should purchase of the Corporation a portion of its ground, on cer- 
tain conditions aflerwards to be agreed on, to become ihereby like 



an individual purchaser of a I>>t, a member of the corporatiorij au- 
thorized to vote at its meetiiigs, and subject to its rules and regula- 
tions, leaving the general care and superintendence of the grounds 
with the ofFicers of the Ccmetcrv. This arrangement between the 
City Council and the Trustees of the Cemetery having been comple- 
ted, the proprietors of tlic Cemetery, for two tliousand dollars, con- 
vej^ed to the city nearly three acres of land, included in five lots, in 
different portions of the grounds, to be used by the city for the burial 
of the dead in graves only. Although doubts may have existed as to 
the expediency of this union, it is now conceded to be one acceptable 
and useful to all parties. 

At a meeting of the Trustees, on the second of June, 1840, it was 
decided to have a sale of lots at auction, soon after the consecration 
of the Cemetery. The lots were laid out to contain about three 
hundred square feet, the minimum price to be ten cents per square 
foot. At the auction, purchasers were to bid for a choice ; the pre- 
mium thus bid, to be in addition to the price of the lot selected. It 
was afterwards determined, that, after the auction, any of the lots 
surveyed and not purchased, might be taken at the minimum price, 
and purchasers who should prefer it might have a lot of any size sur- 
veyed for them, in any portion of the grounds not reserved from sale, 
by paying an additional bonus of five dollars per lot. A small por- 
tion of the grounds, consisting mainly of a beautiful eminence in the 
centre of the Cemetery, called Chapel Hill, on which it is hoped 
that a Chapel may yet be erected, either built with the funds of the 
corporation, or by the munificence of some liberal minded donor, is 
however reserved from sale. 

The consecration of the Cemetery, in accordance with previous 
arrangements, took place on Sunday, June 14, at half past five o'- 
clock, P. M.; it having been postponed from Saturday, the 13th, in 
consequence of the uni)leasantness of the weather. Scats to accom- 
modate three thousand persons had been prepared on a gentle slope, 
gradually ascending from Dell Avenue, near to and northward of 
Chapel Hill, the ground here being formed into a natural amphithe- 
atre, particularly well adapted for this purpose ; a rustic bower, for 
the accommodation of the gentlemen engaged in the consecration, 
was erected, at the foot of the slo])e, whence the address was deli- 
vered, and where the other services of the daj' were ])erformed. 
The day was one of the finest days of June, clear, calm, and bright ; 
a gentle breeze, loaded with the perfume of the locust blossoms, 
tempered the heat of the sun, while the showers of the previous day 
had imparted to the grass and the foliage of the trees tints of the 
deepest and richest green. The services consisted of prayers by the 
Rev. Dr. Brown Emerson of Salem, and Uev. Charles C. Sewall of 
c 



Danvers ; an address by tho Hon. Daniel A. White ; an original 
Hymn, by Rev. Dr. James Flint, and an original Ode, by Mr. Wil- 
liam Wallace Morland, of Salem, furnished by these gentlemen, at 
the request of the Trustees, the Hymn having been read by Rev. Dr. 
Flint, and the Ode by Rev. Mr. Wayland. At the close of the ser- 
vices, Old Hundred was sung, with great effect, the whole audience 
joining in a Hymn, written for the occasion, by Nath'l Lord, Jr. 
Esq. of Ipswich. The music, which was entirely vocal, was under 
the direction of Mr. Jacob Hood. The services were of a very im- 
pressive character, and were listened to with silent interest by the 
immense audience which filled every seat and thronged all the spaces 
within sound of the speaker's voice. From the most accurate calcu- 
lations which could be made, it was supposed that at least from six 
to eight thousand persons were present on the ground ; yet, notwith- 
standing the greatness of the number and denseness of the crowd, 
perfect order was maintained. 

On the Tuesday succeeding the consecration, the 16th of June, 
the lots were offered for sale at public auction, by Mr. Gilbert G. 
Newhall the auctioneer, about three hundred having been survey- 
ed and prepared for this purpose. On this day, seventy-seven lots 
were disposed of, at premiums varying from one to twenty-five dollars. 
The whole amount of the bonus thus received, on the choice of the 
lots was five hundred and forty-two dollars. During the next suc- 
ceeding few days, thirty-six lots more were sold at the minimum 
price often cents per square foot, making one hundred and thirteen 
lots that were sold at the opening of the Cemetery. 

The Cemetery was formerly situated within the limits of tho town 
of Danvers, but by the last Legislature an Act was passed so alter- 
ing the boundaries of the city of Salem and the town of Danvei's, 
that the whole of the Cemetery, and the three avenues which 
lead to it, are now within the limits of the city of Salem. One 
of these avenues from the western part of the city, crosses the river 
at Frye's Mills, a second, from its centre, is the Paradise road, so 
called, while the third runs from the upper part of North Salem. 
These roads are made safe and easy for carriages by widening and 
raising the dam at Frye's mills, and by reducing the steep declivity 
at the western extremity of the Paradise road. In addition to these, 
the town of Danvers has recently instructed their Selectmen to lay 
out and construct a way from the principal street of that town, 
at the foot of Pool's Hill, to enter the Cemetery on its western 
boundary. 

The grounds of the Cemetery are peculiarly well adapted to their 
intended purposes, and if they are more limited, and, at present, 
wanting in the deep seclusion furnished by the thick woods of some 



other places appropriated to similar objects, yet, in other respects, 
they have superior advantages. They are as extensive as can ever 
bo required, and when the contemplated and intended system of 
planting is fully carried into effect, they will furnish all the retire- 
ment and privacy that can bo desired. The soil is of an excellent 
quality and by its different exposures furnishes sites suited to the cul- 
tivation and growth of all the varieties of trees and shrubs that will 
endure our climate ; the attainment of which object, more especially 
the collecting of all the trees that are indigenous to New England, 
within its limits, was always one of the prominent designs of this 
Cemetery. 

An efficient and faithful keeper will constantly reside upon the 
grounds, and being fully empowered so to do, will see that all the 
Police regulations to protect them from intrusion and violation, and 
the birds and animals from annoyance and injury, are duly enforced. 
There are but few places combining so great a variety within 
equally narrow limits. Here are extensive views, picturesque dells, 
and rough and craggy rocks, protruding from the sides of steep de- 
clivities, covered with moss grown trees ; here are open plains, sha- 
dy groves, and sunny glades, as if Nature had formed this spot for 
the very purposes to which it is now consecrated. On its southern 
side flows a gentle sti-eam, while a high range of hills, affording a 
wide view of ocean and of land, forms its northern boundary. 
On the rocky promontory of Halidon Hill, at the east, the rays of the 
rising sun first strike, while its setting beams linger upon the west- 
ern slopes. Here the carol of the birds and the hum of the in- 
sects is first heard in early spring, and here, on the last days of 
autumn, they love to loiter. Here, from these groves, ascends their 
earliest matin song, and here, too, they warble forth their latest ves- 
per hymn. Here all the tribes of animated nature, as they sport in 
the air, bask in the sunshine, or gambol in the shade, unite in one 
grand choral song of praise to that Being by whose word of pow- 
er all things were made, and whose fiat will call from their labors all 
those who, each in " his house of clay,'' shall here take their 
"dreamless rest." 



ODES AND HYMNS, 



PERFORMED 



AT THE CONSECRATION 



ORIGINAL ODE — By William Wallace Morlanu. 

While hero fair Spring her buds bestows, 
And Summer flowers more brightly bloom, 

The Autumn wind that coldly blows, 

Shall breathe no sadness o'er the tomb: — 

What though they fade, — an emblem true 

Of life and beauty here below, — 
That life shall have a spring-time too. 

That beauty wear a richer glow. 

At evening's hour of holy rest, 

When daylight glory slowly dies. 
And robes with flame the glowing wCiU, 

Till softer lights of night arise; 

Well may we deem that spirits pure 

Above this sacred turf shall bend, 
And earth-born ties their thoughts allure, 

To commune with a much loved friend. 

Then strew the flowers each loves the best, 

And if perchance a dropping tear 
Upon their gentle leaves shall rest, 

When waitcth here the heavy bier; 

No stain is on their petals left, 

Though for awhile the clouds may lower, 

The sun soon brings the smile bereft. 
And Hopo is still Aflliction's dower. 

Grove of hush'd beauty ! Ne'er shall grief 

Thy cheerless visiter be found. 
The stricken heart shall find relief, 

And soothing memories hereubo und. 



Couch ofilie lovely ! doubly dear! 

Home of the young, serene, not sad ! 
Wail not; their rest can need no tear — 

Weep for yourselves; for them bo glad. 



ORIGINAL HYMN — By Rev. Dr. James Flwt. 

From thee, O God, our spirits come, 

Enshrined in breathing clay, 
Mysterious guests, not here at home, 

Nor destined long to stay. 

Nature, from her maternal breast, 

Nurtures the living frame, 
Till summoned hence the stranger guest 

Returns to whence it came. 

When of its life-guest dispossess'd, 

Th' appointed goal attain'd. 
Her bosom folds in dreamless rest. 

The form her fruits sustained. 

Be these sequestered haunts, of mound 

And slope, of dell and glade, 
Approached henceforth, as hallovv'd ground, 

Where life's pale wrecks are laid. 

Yet o'er these wrecks, in loveliness 

These scenes shall yearly bloom, 
Type of the soul's etherial dress, 

Heav'n-wrought beyond the tomb. 

O why then mourn, that earth to earth. 

And dust to dust is given.'' 
'Tis but the spirit's second birth, 

Its coronal for heaven. 

Though dear the dust, that once was warm 

With life the spirit gave, 
We dote not on the perished form, 

That moulders in the grave. 



We yield the body to its doom, 

The dust in dust to lie} 
Yet we may deem beside the tomb 

The spirit hovering nigh. 

And oft our steps shall linger near, 
'Till death the veil remove, 

And kindred spirits, sunder'd here, 
Be joined in deathless love. 



ORIGINAL HYMN — Bv Nathaniel Lord, Jr. 

Friends, strangers, all, who visit here, 
Tread lightly o'er this hallowed ground, 

For friends and kindred near and dear 
Will in its bosom soon be found- 

But, who will first beneath this shade, 
Find his long rest, no mortal knows ; 

He only, who these bodies made. 
Knows when or where they may repose. 

To Him we consecrate this grove; 

May his good Spirit guard the dust. 
Committed here in faith and hope. 

Till resurrection of the just. 



NAMES OF SUBSCRIBERS. 



The following arc tho names of the persons who subscribed for 
the purchase of the Cemetery. The sum so raised, to be repaid 
from the proceeds of the sale of lots. The whole amount subscribed 
was six thousand two hundred and thirty five dollars. 



IN SALEM. 



Joseph Peabody, 
Francis Peabody, 
George Peabody, 
Stephen C. Phillips, 
Joseph S. Cabot, 
Michael Shepard, 
John Robinson, 
Putnam I. Farnham. 
William Sutton, 
Thomas Downing, 
Benjamin Merrill, 
John C. Lee, 
Nathaniel Silsbec, 
Dudley L. Pickman, 
Richard S. Rogers, 
Oliver Hubbard, 
John W. Treadwell, 
Charles Hoffman, 
Daniel A. White, 
Robert Brookhouse, 
William A. Lander, 
William Pickman, 

Ebenezcr Shillabcr, 
Henry Cook, 
Ebenezer Sutton, 
Caleb L. Frost, 



Thomas P. Pingrec, 
Benjamin F. Browne, 
Allen Putnam, 
Jeremiah Page, 
Caleb Foote, 
William H. Foster, 
Edward H. Payson, 
David Merritt, 
George Wheatland, 
Pickering Dodge, 
Ephraim Emmerton, 
Abel L. Peirson, 
D. & J. Pulsifer, 
Gideon Barstow, 
Leverett Saltonstall, 
W. & S. B. Ives, 
James W. Cheever, 
Francis Choate, 
Miss S. Burlcy, 
Asahel Huntington, 
John H. Silsbee. 



IN DANVERf?. 



Philip R. Southwick, 
John W. Proctor, 
George Osborne. 



ACT OF INCORPORATION. 



COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS. 

IN THE VEAB OF Oim LOBD ONE THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED AND FOHTY. 

AN ACT 

To Incorporate tlie Proprietors of tlio 

HARMONY GROVE CEMETERY. 



Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives, in 
General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: 

Section 1. Francis Peabody, George Wheatland, Stephen C. 
Phillips, Joseph S. Cabot, John C. Lee, and William H. Foster, 
together with such other persons as shall become jiroprietors of lots 
in the Cemetery hereinafter mentioned, their successors and assigns, 
are hereby made a Corporation, by the name of the Proprietors of the 
Harmony Grove Cemetery, and said Corporation shall have all the 
j)o\vers and privileges, and be subject to all the duties, restrictions, 
and liabilities, set forth in the forty-fourth chapter of the Revised 
Statutes, except as is otherwise provided in this act. 

Section 2. The said Corporation may take and hold, by pur- 
chase or otherwise, in fee simple, for the purposes hereinafter pro- 
vided, a tract of land, not exceeding sixty acres, situate at and near 
a place called Harmony Grove, in the town of Danvers ; and may 
also take and hold personal property, not exceeding in amount twen- 
ty thousand dollars, to be applied to objects connected with, and ap- 
propriate to the purposes of said Corporation. 

Section 3. The said Corporation shall take and hold the afore- 
said land for a Rural Cemetery or burial ground, and for the erection 
of tombs, cenotaphs, or other monuments for or in memory of the 
dead; and for this purpose shall have power to lay out the same in 
suitable lots or subdivisions, for family or other burying places; to 
plant and embellish the same with trees, shrubbery and other rural 
ornaments; to inclose and divide the same witii suitable walls or 
fences, and to construct and annex thereto, such suitable buildings, 
appendages, and other conveniences, as said Corporation shall from 
time to time deem expedient. 



Section 4. The said Corporation shall have authority to grant 
and convey to the city of Salcni any portion of the land aforesaid, 
for a public burial ground ; and also to grant and convey, to any per- 
son or persons, the sole and exclusive right of burial, and of erecting 
tombs and cenotaphs, and of ornannenting any designated lot or sub- 
division, upon such terms and conditions, and subject to such regula- 
tions, as said Corporation shall prescribe ; which right so granted 
and conveyed, shall be held for the purposes aforesaid, and for none 
other, as real estate by the proprietor or proprietors thereof, and 
shall not be subject to attachment or execution, or to be applied to 
the payment of debts by assignment under any insolvent law. 

Section 5. The land aforesaid shall be and is hereby declared 
exempted from all public taxes, so long as the same shall remain ded- 
icated to the purposes of a Cemetery. 

Section 6. Any person who shall wilfully destroy, mutilate, de- 
face, injure, or remove, any tomb, monument, grave stone, or other 
structure placed in the Cemetery aforesaid ; or any fence, railing, or 
other work ei-ected for the protection or ornament of any tomb, 
monument, grave-stone, or other structure aforesaid, or of any Cem- 
etery lot ; or shall wilfully destroy, remove, cut, break, or injure 
any tree, shrub, or plant, within the limits of said Cemetery ; or 
shall shoot or discharge any gun or other fire arms within the said 
limits, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon convic- 
tion thereof before any Justice of the Peace, or other court of compe- 
tent jurisdiction, shall be punished by a fine, not less than five dol- 
lars, nor more than one hundred dollars, according to the nature and 
aggravation of the offence ; and suchofl^ender shall also be liable to an 
action of trespass, to be brought in any court of competent jurisdic- 
tion, in the name of said corporation, to pay all damages which shall 
have been occasioned by his or her unlawful act or acts ; which 
money, when recovered, shall be applied by the Trustees of said 
corporation to the reparation and restoration of the property destroy- 
ed or injured, as aforesaid ; and members of said corporation shall 
be competent witnesses in such suit. 

Section 7. The lots in said Cemetery, which may be granted 
and conveyed, as before provided, shall be indivisible, and upon the 
decease of any proprietor of a lot, the heirs at law or devisees of such 
lot, as the case may be, shall be entitled to all the privileges of mem- 
bership ; provided, however, that if there be more than one heir at 
law or devisee of such lot, and they do not agree in writing, and file 
such agreement with the clerk of said corporation within six months 
from the decease of the owner, the board of Trustees of said corpo- 
ration shall designate and enter of record, which of said heirs at law 
or devisees shall represent said lot, and vote in the meetings of said 



corporation ; nhich designation shall continue in force until said 
heirs or devisees shall make and file such agreement in manner a- 
foresaid, or until, by reason of death, removal, or other sufficient 
cause, another designation shall become necessary ; and in making 
any such designation, the Trustees shall, as far as may conveniently 
be done, give preference to males over females, to proximity of 
blood, and to priority of agOj having due regard, however, to prox- 
imity of residence. 

Section 8. The said corporation may take and hold any grant, 
donation, or bequest of property in trust, to apply the same, or the 
income thereof, for the improvement or embellishment of the said 
Cemetery, or of any buildings, structures, or fences, erected, or to 
be erected thei'ein, or for the repair, preservation, or renewal of any 
tomb, monument, grave-stone, fence, or railing, or other erection, in 
or around any Cemetery lot, according to the terms of such grant, 
donation, or bequest : and the Supreme Judicial Court, or any other 
Court having equity jurisdiction, shall have power to compel the ex- 
ecution of such trust. 

Section 9. This act shall take eftect from and after its passage. 

House of Representatives, February 18, 1340, 
I'assed to be enacted. 

ROBERT C. WINTHROP, Speaker. 
In aenale, Feb. 19, 1840, 

Passed to be enacted. 

DANIEL P. KING, President. 
Approved : February 19, 1840, 

MARCUS MORTON. 



BY-LAWS 



NUMBER, POWERS, AND DUTIES, OF OFFICERS. 

The officers of the corporation shall consist of not less than six nor 
more than twelve Trustees. 

The Trustees shall choose ono of their own number to he Presi- 
dent, who shall also be the President of the corporation, and they 
shall also choose a Secretary and Treasurer, either from their own 
body or at large. 

The Trustees shall have the management, superintendence, and 
care ofthe property and all the concerns of the corporation, and of 
the sales of lots in the Cemetery, and they shall make a report of 
their doings to the corjjoration, at the annual meeting. 

The Treasurer shall have the management ofthe fiscal concerns of 
the corporation, under the direction and control of the Trustees, to 
whom he shall make an annual report, which shall be laid before 
the corporation at the annual meeting. 

The Secretary shall record the doings at all meetings of the cor- 
poration and ofthe Trustees. 

POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE KEEPER. 

The Trustees shall appoint a Keeper ofthe Cemetery, who shall 
reside in the dwelling house erected for his use ; and it ;jhaU. be the 
duty ofthe Keeper, under the direction ofthe Trustees, to have the 
particular care and oversight of the grounds, to keep the avenues and 
paths in good order, to survey and lay out lots, to attend to the 
planting of trees and shrubs, to see that the by-laws respecting visit- 
ors are duly observed, to remove and prosecute trespassei's, and gen- 
erally to perform all such duties as the Trustees may prescribe. He 
shall take personal ciiarge of all burials within the Cemetery, and 
shall obey all the instructions which he may receive from the propri- 
etors ofthe lots, in respect to the opening of tombs or the digging of 
graves, and the general care and oversight of the same ; and he shall 
account to the Treasurer for all fees which he may receive for 
burials, as established by the by-law.-j. ile shall keep a register of 



XVll 

burials in such form as may be prescribed by the Trustees, which 
shall be constantly open for inspection to the proprietors of lots and 
the members of the city government. The compensation of the 
Keeper shall be determined by the Trustees. 

The fee for opening and closing a tomb or grave, for burial, shall 
be two dollars, payable to the Keeper. If any extraordinary service 
is performed, such additional compensation may be required, as 
shall be determined by the Trustees for the time being. 

CHOICE OF OFFICERS. 

The first board of Trustees shall be chosen as soon as may be, at 
a regular meeting of the corporation, and shall hold their offices until 
the twenty-seventh day of June next, or until others are chosen. A 
meeting of the corporation shall be held on the twenty-seventh day 
of June next, at which time a board of Trustees shall be chosen, 
who shall hold their otlices until the first Wednesday of January next, 
or until others are chosen. On the first Wednesday of January, 
in the next and every following year, a board of Trustees shall be 
chosen, who shall hold their offices for one year, or until others are 
chosen. 

ANNUAL AND SPECIAL MEETINGS. 

Tiie annual meeting shall be held on the first Wednesday of Janu- 
ary, at such hour and place as the Trustees may direct, and the Sec- 
retary shall give notice of the same in one or more newspapers, 
|)rinted in Salem, seven days at least before the time of meeting. 
The Secretary shall, in like manner, give notice of all special moet- 
mgs of the corporation, which may be called by the Trustees, or by 
any twenty members of the corporation, who may unite in a written 
application to the Secretary. At all meetings, a quorum for business 
shall consist of not less than seven members ; and any business may 
be transacted of which notice shall be given in the advertisements 
for the meeting, and all questions shall bo decided by a majority of 
the members voting, either in person or by px"oxy. 

REGULATIONS RESPECTING VISITERS. 

All persons, who are not detected in any violation of the regula- 
tions, or in any disorderly conduct, will be permitted to walk through 
the grounds, but will be required to confine themselves to the av- 
enues and paths. 

No persons except proprietors of lots and members of the City 
<^Jovernment, with their families, or strangers accompanied by them, 
shall be admitted into the Cemetery in vehicles or on horseback. No 



ridinir or driving shall be pcrniitted in nny part of the grounds, except 
ni)Oii the avenues, nor ut a rate faster than a walk. 

No liorsc sliall bo fastened except at the posts provided for this 
[)urpose, nor shall be left unfastened without a keei)er. 

All persons are prohibited from gathering any flowers, cilher wild 
or cultivated, or removing, breaking, cutting or marking any tree, 
shrub or plant. 

All persons are prohibited from climbing over, writing upon, de- 
facing and injuring any monument, grave-stone, fence, rustic seat, 
or other structure in or belonging to the Cemetery. 

All persons are prohibited from discharging fa-e-arms of any de- 
scription in the Cemetery, and from attempting in any manner to de- 
stroy or annoy the birds, squirrels, and other animals. 

The Seal of the Corporation shall bo n plain circle, with the letters 
H. G. C. inscribed therein. 



LIST OF THE OFFICERS 

OF THE 

HARMONY GROVE CEMETERY CORPORATION, 

Chosen on the 27tli day of June, 1810. 

TRUSTEES. 
JOSEPH S. CABOT, Tresidekt. 
STEPHEN C. PHH.LIPS, 
FRANCIS PEABODY, 
JOHN C. LEE, 
GEORGE WHEATLAND, 
riCKERLNG DODGE, 
FITCH POOL, 
VVH.LIAM H. FOSTER. 

WILLIAM H. FOSTER, Sec'y and Treasurer. 

STANDING COMMITTEES. 

ON BUILDINGS. 

STEPHEN C. PHILLIPS, 
FRANCIS PEABODY, 
GEORGE WHEATLAND. 

ON AVENUES, PATHH, AND rL.YNTI.Nli. 

JOHN C. LEE, 
JOSEPH S. CABOT, 
PICKERING DODGE. 

ON LOTS. 

WILLIAM II. FOSTER, 
JOHN C. LEE, 
FITCH POOL. 

THOMAS CRUICKSIIANK, Keeper 



ERRATA. 
P. 11— Note— for 185, read 135. 
r. 16— Note— for v. 5, read v. 2. 



